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| Christine Brosseau is all smiles and doesn't look the worse
for wear as she is shown moments after completing a 5000 metre swim in 2
hours and 50 minutes on April 21, 2006 at the Howard Armstrong Recreation
Centre. She swam a full 200 laps as part of the First Annual Foresters BIG
Swim for Arthritis and was presented with a medal in honour of her
accomplishment from Bob McOrmond, President of the Sudbury Shunia Branch
#228. |
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| The Foresters BIG Swim for Arthritis was the first event of its kind in
Canada
involving approximately 150 pools, from
one coast, to another. This national swimming event is designed to
increase awareness about the benefits of water-based activity for those
with arthritis, and to raise funds for The Arthritis Society. The event
took place in pools across the country from
April 20 – 23, 2006.
The Howard Armstrong Recreation Centre was the only place in Sudbury where
the event was hosted locally.
Christine, who is a
victim of rheumatoid arthritis, began swimming two years ago. She can
often be found in the pool several hours a day, taking advantage of adult
swims and public swimming sessions.
Her goal was to complete the 5000
meters necessary to receive a “Gold
Medal” and to raise over $500 in pledges. She accomplished both
objectives! |
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| Andrea Lucas, seated on the left, is a Fund-Raising
Assistant with the Arthritis Society. She and Mary-Lou Hussak, Manager of
Regional Development for Northeastern Ontario, were on hand for the
Foresters BIG Swim for Arthritis, handing out information brochures to
visitors to the Howard Armstrong Recreation Centre during the event.
Standing in the photo, from the left, are Bob McOrmond, Anne Gervais,
Facility Pool Operator, Pete Wilford, a participant who swam 2500 metres,
and Pat McOrmond.
According to Mary-Lou, Arthritis doesn't seem to get as high a profile
as some of the other diseases like Heart & Stroke and Cancer, but it
is definitely a life-debilitating disease that afflicts a large segment of
the population. In fact, statistics show that with a rate of 22.8% of the
population of the Greater Sudbury Area being diagnosed with some form of
arthritis, this is the 2nd highest region in Ontario with the disease. The
provincial average is only 17%.
The Foresters have been in existence for over 126 years and have been
established in Sudbury since 1972. They have a local membership of
approximately 600, with a couple of dozen active members involved in
numerous fund-raising events such as the BIG SWIM.
Christine Brosseau generated a great deal of publicity for the event in
Valley East. She and her pet bird, Sammy, have been at the mall collecting
pledges every Saturday for over a month. To see the other articles that
have been written about Christine's quest, follow the links below: |
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| Christine
Brosseau Hopes To Set Personal Goal By Covering 200 Laps Of The Pool In
Less Than Three Hours |
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| Christine
Brosseau Raises Money and Public Awareness About Arthritis |
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